The Festival – Beneath the Waves
Film Festival is a US-based international film festival in
its’ fourth consecutive year, showcasing the talent of marine
film-makers worldwide, highlighting conservation issues across the globe.
Selected films will shown at mini-festivals all over the world, and for the
first time in the UK The Poly, Falmouth is hosting it’s own
mini-festival.

The competition – we invite
submissions of both short films and still images which highlight local
conservation issues. Underwater footage is not required but imagery must
focus on ocean/marine/aquatic themes or issues, and must be your own
original work. A research and/or conservation angle is encouraged but not
essential. We welcome films and stills with all types of messages and
subject matter, but we also want to highlight ocean success stories!

The winning film will be shown alongside international
films, presented by Canon photographer Fergus Kennedy. Winning images will
be exhibited in The Poly Gallery for one week prior to the festival. If you
are a diver, photographer, scientist, conservationist, or just passionate
about the ocean then this is for you – if you have a good story which
needs to be told, we want to hear from you! Deadline: 14th
May.

PRIZES – £200 for the winning
documentary / £50 for the winning photograph

Nauticam has announced the latest release in its
acclaimed line of precision crafted camera housings, the NA-D7100. The
NA-D7100 is designed specifically for the new Nikon D7100, and represents
the latest level of development, engineering and ergonomics in underwater
camera housings. The NA-D7100 builds on the heritage and success of
Nauticam housings for Nikon D7000, D600 and D800. The very capable D7100 is
Nikon’s best DX format camera ever, and is an ideal camera for the
serious enthusiast to the seasoned professional. Lens support is the widest
in the industry, and Nauticam offers a huge range of supporting
accessories.

BSoUP Member Alex
Tattersall of Underwater Visions has just returned from Sogod Bay,
Philippines. He took a Nikon D7100 camera in an early Nauticam housing with
him, and has been kind enough to share both his images and thoughts on the
camera’s performance at wetpixel. Alex set out to compare the D7100 with the D7000 and
found that the camera gave improved detail as well as superior AF
performance. He also found that the camera’s LCD was clearer for
reviewing images. However, he also found that the camera still lacks some
performance in key areas, particularly when compared with the performance
of pro level bodies. In continuous mode, the buffer filled very rapidly,
and both the card write time and on-screen review generation in RAW mode
was slow.

Photography groups have reacted angrily to new
legislation passed in Parliament over the use of copyrighted material when
the owner cannot be contacted.

Photographs or other creative works can be used without
the owners' explicit permission as long as a "diligent search" has taken
place. Campaigners said the new act paved the way for the exploitation of
images posted on the internet. But the government said the act made
"copyright licensing more efficient".

The Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act was passed by
Parliament last week. The government said it would support "the UK's
enterprise culture and help make it one of the best places to do
business".

This year’s Asian Dive Expo was held from 19 to 22 April at the Sands
Convention Center, Singapore.

Besides the Scubcam/Wetpixel party. Drew Wong was there
to cover the latest in underwater imaging, and the show did not disappoint.
There were quite a lot of new housings, including some for point and shoots
like the G15 and GX1, some for the EVF big sensor cameras like the NEX6 but
it was largely a show for the big cameras.

The FG15 Housing, specially designed for the Canon
G15, meets the same high and professional standards of function, style and
durability as previously found in popular and successful Fantasea F series
Housings (FP7000 and FP7100). It is ergonomically designed, fully
functional and features easy-to-use, clearly labeled controls. This shock
resistant housing protects your G15 camera from damaging elements including
water, sand, dust, snow, ice and pollutants. The FG15 has been successfully
depth tested to 80 meters (240 ft.) and is certified to a maximum depth of
60 meters (200 ft.), which is well beyond the 40 meter (130 ft.) dive limit
of most compact housings.

Panasonic is proud to announce a new addition of
Digital Single Lens Mirrorless DMC-G6 that realizes real-to-life photo and
video recording even in higher quality. The Digital Live MOS Sensor
achieves high-resolution, high sensitivity image recording. The new Venus
Engine is attains high-performance signal processing with the advanced
noise reduction system. Combined with the high sensor performance, DMC-G6
minimizes noise and even achieves shooting at max. ISO25600 (Extended) high
sensitivity image recording. The DMC-G6 boasts quick response featuring
high-speed burst shooting at 7 fps in full resolution. Getting ready to
shoot in only 0.5 sec * after start-up, the DMC-G6 never misses fleeting
shooting opportunities together with its high-speed, high precision Light
Speed AF. Newly integrated Low Light AF enables accurate focusing on the
target subject even in low-lit situations.

The popular Splash-in underwater photography competition
will take place on Saturday 4th May at this year's ScubaFest. Entry is free
and open to all

There will be some great prizes on offer with sponsorship
from Suunto, BSAC and Oonas Divers.

The registration desk will be open between 6pm and 10pm
on the Friday evening in the Pentewan Sands Holiday Park clubhouse. Please
bring your camera and memory card with you as you will need to take a
photograph at registration.

Please bring your images for the competition back to the
registration desk on Saturday between 15.30 and 17.30. The prize giving
presentation will be held at 19.00 in the clubhouse and will be compered by
our competition judge, Charles Hood.

ScubaFest 2013

Jeff Goodman on location

CornSoup - Next Meeting

Monday, 29th April 2013

The Boat Park, Grove Place, Falmouth, Cornwall
TR11 4AU

The next meeting of CornSoup takes place on Monday, 29th
April 2013 at the Watersports Centre Falmouth. Two fantastic speakers Jeff
Goodman and Jane Morgan will entertain and inform you. Please come along to
support us and enjoy a drink or two from the bar. Meet at 7 for 7.30pm
start

Jeff is an award winning highly experienced cameraman and
director with over 30 years experience in the business, working
globally filming and directing in varying habitats and conditions from
Underwater to Aerials, from Commercial Studios to Rain Forests and from
Arctic Ice Flows to Deserts. Credits include BBC, HTV, YTV, Central, CBS,
Sino Films, Partridge Films, ABC Kane, Silverback Productions, WNET,
Goldhawk Films,Tigress Films, Screenhouse Productions, Bio Vision, Ch4,
Discovery USA, Discovery Europe, Canal +, Zebra Films & National
Geographic, to name but a few! Jeff will be tallking about shooting
underwater video both abroad and in the UK.

Jane is a prolific freelance underwater photo journalist
and a regular contributor of SCUBA magazine in the UK. She is also a
regular contributor to Ocean Geographic magazine as part of the Photography
Masterclass, and her photos can often be seen in the national press. She
has also contributed to several books including DIVE Red Sea and DIVE The
Ultimate Guide. Not surprisingly her talk will be all about how to get your
work published!

Focus On - Macro & Close-up -
Results

We invited all BSoUP Members to submit
an image of something small for this month's Focus On Competition and
suggested the subject could be very, very small, or a bit larger, as long
as it was an exciting image!

Congratulations to Andrew McKelvie who
was the winner of this month's Focus On Competition - Macro & Close-up
with an image of an Orange banded pipefish taken at Malapascua, Philippines
with a 60mm macro lens, f13 @ 125th sec.

BSoUP Members only may view all the
entries (enlarged image and with named photographers) in the Slideshow Archive. You
will be asked to login if you have not already done so this session.

If you were not one of the top six and would like to know
how you scored, please contact Brian Pitkin.

Next month is the Focus On Competition
theme is Abstract. The competition is open to BSoUP Members only. Please
read the Rules and
guidelines before entering via the Competition Entry Form. Deadline is
Sunday 5th May at one minute to midnight.

Website of the Week - Jeremy & Amanda
Cuff

The JA-Universe website is a photography,
photojournalism, feature writing and marketing showcase by Jeremy and
Amanda Cuff.

'Since 1999, we have developed considerable
skills in both photography and writing through practical "in the field"
experimentation and by attending various courses culminating in A-Level
Photography Grade "A"s.

As underwater photographers we have studied
with the UK's foremost teacher Martin Edge here in the UK and also in the
Caribbean, Hawaii, the Egyptian Red Sea. We've also taken tuition with Kurt
Amsler, a world renowned underwater photographer based in the south of
France.

As land photographers, we have developed
substantial skills in the areas travel, landscape, sport and abstracts,
with plans to expand into macro, wildlife and more set piece studio based
work. We're also developing a gathering knowledge in digital imaging since
our conversion to digital in 2006.

The next BSoUP meeting takes place on Wednesday, 17
April 2013 at 7.30 for 8.00 p.m. at our new venue, in Room G.01 in the
Royal School of Mines, Imperial College, South Kensington, London, SW7 5BD
(Directions). New and prospective new members will be welcomed
from 7.30 p.m. See Welcome. Mike Brodbelt: Photo Basics
II.

In the second of our series of technical talks Mike
will cover three areas - 'Colour in digital imaging', 'Optical
considerations of shooting underwater and how they affect equipment and
image composition' and'What's inside your
digital camera'.

Mike has been has been taking pictures under water
(currently with a Canon EOS 5D) for around 10 years. Trips and images have
focused on blue water fish and reef shots, and he also has an interest in
the technical side of digital cameras. He is a member of the
BSoUP Committee.

Focus On - Macro & Close-upThe
competition is now closed. 25 of the 37 images submitted have been
shortlisted for projection and judging at this month's BSoUP meeting. The
Focus On Competition Slideshow is now available for BSoUP
Members to view on the BSoUP website. You will be prompted to log in if you
have not already done so this session.

Diving close to the end of the Scapa season presented
some great opportunities for underwater photography. Simon intends to
conduct a brutally honest review of his work in Scapa Flow, explaining what
worked and why as well as picking apart the reasons for failed images. It's
an open session and fellow BSOUPers can ask anything at any time and honest
comments - from 'Why bother? Its rust." to 'How did you." or "Where is the
nudibranch?" - are positively encouraged. For a taster of some that worked
you can go to www.simonbrownimages.com/Simon,
a longstanding BSoUP member, is a professional
photographer specialising in the underwater world. His work been published
in dive magazines around the world and his clients also include include
SCUBA, Unterwasser, Bike Magazine, Janes Defence, the Daily Telegraph,
Fourth Element clothing, the National Archaeological Society and many
others.

HP Red Sea Online Competition 2013

The 3 winning photographers for March:

First place went to Scott Portelli from Australia who won 21.74%
of the votes

The Second place went to Richard Careyfrom UK won 16.56% of the votesThe
Third place went to Vanessa Mignon from Australia who won 13.61%
of the votes

Blackmagic Design has announced the Blackmagic
Pocket Cinema Camera, a beautifully designed, pocket-sized digital cinema
camera that includes powerful features such as Super 16mm sized 1080HD
sensor, super wide 13 stops of dynamic range, built-in SD card recorder for
Apple ProRes, lossless compressed CinemaDNG RAW capture and active Micro
Four Thirds lens mount, all in an attractive compact design for only
US$995. Since the original Blackmagic Cinema Camera was launched at NAB
2012, it has been celebrated by industry professionals for its amazing film
look and accurate and cinematic color. The new Blackmagic Pocket Cinema
Camera has most of the features of its bigger brother, including its
feature film look, but has been redesigned with a dramatically smaller size
that is less than an inch thick and can be held easily in your
hand.

Mangrove MVHS-L and MVHS-XL housings for Sony
camcorders

Aditech has released a new version of their Mangrove
MVHS-L and MVHS-XL housings. This provides support for Sony camcorders that
are equipped with the new Sony Multi connector. As with previous models,
the rear of the housing is made of Delrin, and it features a control system
using LANC control that gives access to all camcorder functions via 12
electromagnetic pushbuttons. The redesigned housing adds compatibility with
the following Sony camcorders: HDR-PJ780VE/PJ790V, HDR-PJ650VE/650V,
HDR-PJ420VE/PJ410VE and HDR-PJ320VE/PJ380B. The housings are available now,
with the MVHS-L retailing at €1,511.57 and the MVHS-XL at
€1,552.89. Both prices exclude local sales taxes.

He is currently a BSAC Dive Leader www.bsac.com
Initially, all his diving was in the United Kingdom. However, scuba diving
has taken him to many places around the world including Bali, Bermuda,
Borneo (Sipidan, Kapalai, Mabul and also Maratua), Burma/Myanmar, Cayman
Islands, Cocos Island, Cuba, Egypt (North & South Red Sea), Indonesia,
Malaysia, Maldives, Palau, Phi Phi Island, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and
Thailand.

On his 18th Birthday, he got his first SLR camera which
went everywhere with him. Once the bug for scuba diving had taken hold, he
had to take underwater pictures too. This has been his biggest passion ever
since and always gets excited about his next trip.

Ikelite has announced the imminent release of its housing
for the Nikon D7100 camera. The polycarbonate housing gives access to all
important camera functions, has an optically corrected glass viewfinder and
built-in TTL exposure when used with Ikelite strobes. Ports are available
for most popular lenses. The Ikelite D7100 housing is shipping in April at
a U. S. retail price of $1,500.00. Further details at
http://www.ikelite.com/web_two/nik_d7100.html

On Wednesday 1 May, the 2020VISION outdoor street gallery
opens at More London, situated between London Bridge and Tower Bridge on
the south bank of the Thames. The free exhibition, in partnership with
Friends of the Earth and their new inspirational project Picture
the Earth, will remain in place until the end of the month. Go
on, grab one of those over-priced cappuccinos and enjoy some if the most
inspiring photography of the UK's wildlife and natural landscapes!

General InformationPhotographer of the
MonthBetween the months of January and May, the Eilat Red
Sea 2013 Online Competition will take place. Each month during the
competition, amateur and professional photographers from all over the world
are invited to submit a portfolio of 3 digital photos. By the end of each
month, 3 photographers will be announced as the winners of that particular
month, chosen both by the public and by a panel of five international judges.Photographer of the
YearAn online competition among all the monthly winners (15
photographers) will then begin on June 1st, 2013. Online voters and a panel
of 5 internatioal judges will eventually select one of the competitors as
the Photographer of the Year.

PrizeFlights, accommodation and
diving expenses will all be covered for the Photographer of the Year, in
order to enable this winner to participate at the Eilat Red Sea 2013
shoot-out in Eilat. The 9th annual Eilat Red Sea competition will be held
on October 20-26, 2013, in Eilat. Innovative categories and some very
worthy prizes are planned for this year, making it very much worthwhile to
be elected as the Photographer of the Year.

The annual BSoUP Membership subscriptions fell due on 1
February 2013. Quite a large number of members have paid already. Our
thanks for doing so.

Please would those who haven't yet done so make life a
little easier for our new Treasurer and new Membership Secretary and pay
your subscription now. There are lots of benefits in being a
BSoUP Member. Subscription rates remain unchanged from last year. Please
see Join.php on
how much and methods of payment.

BSoUP Members don't forget you can login to check
and if necessary change your e-mail address, postal address and password.
Select 'Edit my details' from the Members menu. If you have never logged in
before you will initially be treated as a 'Guest' until an Administrator
upgrades you to 'Member'. If we don't have your correct details we won't be
able to post you copies of the magazine or send you information via
e-mail.

2020VISION Roadshow

Royal Geographical Society, London
SW7

Friday 17th May, 2013

Some of the UK's top nature photographers, Andy
Rouse, Alex Mustard, Mark Hamblin and Peter
Cairns, will gather in London on 17 May to present an evening of
spell-binding imagery and personal anecdotes from 2020VISION, the most
ambitious nature photography project ever staged in the UK. Taking place at
the stunning Royal Geographical Society in Kensington, THE VISION theatre
show, part of the 2020VISION Roadshow, will provide a fascinating insight
into the ethos behind the project, reveal inspiring stories from throughout
the country where our natural ecosystems are being repaired and
re-connected, and showcase some of the very best wildlife and landscapes
the UK has to offer.

The British Wildlife Photography Awards recognise the
talents of photographers practising in Britain, whilst at the same time
highlight the great wealth and diversity of Britain’s natural
history.

Now in its fifth year, this highly acclaimed and
prestigious competition has captivated the nation with outstanding and
beautiful imagery. It is a celebration of British wildlife as well as
a showcase for photographers.

The competition is open to professional photographers,
amateurs, young and old, and any nationality. Everyone is eligible.
All images must have been taken in the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands.

Win a one-week liveaboard holiday to the Maldives
(excl. flights) for two people courtesy of Maldives Scuba Tours

The 2013 British Underwater Photography Championships,
organised by the British Society of Underwater Photographers (BSoUP), will
take place on Saturday 6th July at Mount Batten, Plymouth, Devon. All
underwater photographers are invited to participate, whether they are
members of BSoUP or not.

BSoUP are delighted to announce that the judges for the
best overall image are Underwater Photojournalists Charles Hood and
Jane Morgan.